Anti-smoking activist Barb Tarbox died in 2003 Ten years after she died of lung cancer, Barb Tarbox is still helping Albertans kick the nicotine habit, thanks to a new campaign launched by Alberta Health Services. Albertans are encouraged to share their stories of quitting or never starting tobacco use to mark the 10th anniversary of the [...]
Register for BC Organ Donation online Alysa Samaratunga was 13-years old when the talented gymnast on Team Canada contracted a rare bacterium while wearing contact lenses in a hot tub. The bacterium damaged her cornea and left the girl who wanted to be on the Canadian Olympic gymnastics team blind in one eye. “I had [...]
Big Pharma sales reps generally don’t discuss harmful side side effects By Alan Cassels It sometimes takes a long time to discover environmental hazards and, once discovered, even longer to do something about them. The dangers of second-hand tobacco smoke, leaded gasoline and asbestos were all deemed bad for our health many years ago, [...]
Obese airline passengers shouldn’t be discriminated against By Arya Sharma Last week the wires were active with suggestions that people with obesity pay more for airline travel. This discussion was prompted by a Samoan airline announcing that they would begin charging passengers by the pound. It was also stimulated by Bharat Bhatta, an economist [...]
You can practice good mental health fitness by observing some simple rules By Dr. Paul Martiquet We often spend time concerning over this physical ailment or that one; there is a cold or flu going around to watch for (yes, get the flu shot) or we need to lose a few pounds. Physical health, as [...]
Alberta Health Services centralized bureaucracy misses all its performance targets By Robert Gerst Last Tuesday board chairman Stephen Lockwood defended the decision to proceed with bonuses for senior managers at Alberta Health Services. As might be expected, the bonuses have produced considerable protest from the public as well as concerns from the government currently [...]
Some BC Dental Association patients require prosthetic treatment, surgery More than 60 people with dental-facial deformities are finally getting treatment – including surgery in some cases – after the B.C. government announced $700,000 in funding to the BC Dental Association. Heath minister Margaret MacDiarmid made the announcement which will help to clear a backlog of [...]
BC Court of Appeal likely not the last stop for doctor-assisted suicide argument The battle over doctor-assisted suicide is expected to begin in the BC Court of Appeal, as the federal government fights a lower court order to rewrite laws governing the rights of terminally ill people to end their lives. The fight was launched [...]
Green tea may prevent brain plaque associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Jack Zenert New research suggests common green tea may prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. University of Michigan researchers found green tea extract interferes with the formation of amyloid plaques, a cause of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers say green tea prevents the “misfolding” of specific proteins in the brain. [...]
US-based BC medical outsourcing company not held accountable according to John Doyle Auditor General John Doyle says the province is not getting a fair shake in a BC medical outsourcing agreement now heading into it’s tenth year. The B.C. government’s decision to outsource administration of the Medical Services Plan and PharmaCare to a U.S.-based company [...]
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